One Hand on the Steering

Plenty of writing getting done over here, just not as much as Camp NaNo demands of me. I’m trying not to sweat it too much though. The story is benefiting from me taking my time to mold each section before heading onto the next, even if I don’t quite hit my word count goal this month.

If you follow my weekly Drabbles, you’ll notice I skipped last week. Honestly I don’t have any real excuse except that my head has been in Shaleigh’s world and it’s difficult to squeeze out little bitty one-shots on TypeTrigger as often as I like because of it. Don’t worry though, I should be getting back to a regular weekly Drabble schedule now.

Here’s the progress on my YA other-world fantasy novel about urban explorer Shaleigh Mallett who is whisked away to the Land of the Fae. Along the way she encounters living statues, friendly minotaurs, and a backstabbing ruler. When she gets tangled up in a love story that can’t possibly end well, Shaleigh finds herself forced to make a difficult choice that could change the future of this new land, and prevent her from ever getting home.

Project: Madam Cloom’s Garden
Current Word Count: 32,641
New Words Written: Plenty since my last update, but not enough to get me caught up with Camp NaNo! I’m a pretty consistent 700 words behind schedule on this piece each night despite my best efforts. We’ll see if I can muster up the energy to write more over the next few days.

Progress: A visit to the rude healers, a heated argument, and an awkward guest have put Shaleigh into a rather down mood. I guess it was inevitable that the realization would fall on her eventually. It’s a good thing she’s about to make a friend.

Next up: Making a friend despite the obstacles and a lesson about masters/madams in this city.

Commentary: Some of my favorite scenes so far? Describing Teagan’s gazebo and glassed-in conservatory with its vines creeping up the walls, trying to decide if there should be a limit to the jerkiness of the healers, and figuring out what kind of formal outfit Shaleigh would choose to wear.